Friday, March 8, 2013

Three lunch dates are booked!Week of March 17th- funds donated by Mendham Borough Schools, Mendham Township Elementary School, St. Joseph's School in Mendham and the Bethlehem Township Team LeadersWeek of April 1st- Funds donated by Tredyffrin/Easttown Education AssociationWeek of May 6th- Funds donated by New Jersey Education Association

Friday, March 1, 2013

My name is Victoria Legacki and I
am a second grade teacher at HilltopSchool in Mendham
Borough, New Jersey.
Before moving to New Jersey in 2007, I was a
first grade teacher (Miss Crocco- I was not married at the time) at Sandy Hook
Elementary School in Newtown,
CT. My time working at SHS was
amazing and I had the opportunity to be mentored by an outstanding
administration and staff of teachers. The faculty at SHS was a tight knit group
of professionals who truly were dedicated to guiding their students to strive
for their best.

As you can imagine, the events of
December 14th left me thoroughly devastated as they did for everyone
that heard the news. My personal connection of knowing the staff and previously
teaching in the first grade classrooms made the event hit so much closer to
home. As the weeks passed I kept saying (as so many people have), “I wish there
was something I could do to make this a little easier for the teachers of Sandy HookSchool.”

In January, I had the opportunity
to visit with many of the staff members and alumni of SHS. While having dinner
with my old first grade team, I learned that some groups have come together to
send lunch to the teachers at school. The teachers I spoke with said that this
has really taken a huge burden off of their shoulders and made their days a
little bit easier by not having to “brown-bag it” a few times a week.

On my car ride home I thought to
myself again, there must be something I can do and someway we can come together
as educators to send our support and love to the teachers of Sandy HookSchool.
I contacted the school and they gladly
welcomed the idea of lunch being sent to Sandy Hook. I contacted a local
restaurant that is willing to deliver and set up the
lunch for a reasonable cost.

Thinking of You Thursdays is a way for us to quietly show our support to the teachers in Newtown. They show up day after day and put their own anxieties and fears aside so that they can continue to create classroom environments that are safe and nurturing. Somehow they find the strength to be strong for their students and put their own fears aside. My hope is that Thinking of you Thursdays will give the teachers a small break- one day a week where they don't have to worry about packing their lunch and they can sit together as a team of teachers and heal.

Many members of the staff in Mendham contributed to the Thinking of you Thursdays lunch fund and we raised enough money to host a hot lunch for the SHS staff on Thursday, March 21st along with the help of the neighboring schools listed above. I am
writing today to see if your school staff is also interested in sponsoring a
luncheon for the teachers or combining with other schools to send a lunch
collaboratively. The current staff at Sandy Hook School is approximately 100
people. The cost for a hot lunch (choices such as chicken marsala, eggplant parmigiana, lasagna…) along
with beverages, plates, side salads and dessert is $10.00 a person. The cost
for a cold lunch with sandwiches along with the other sides is $9.00 a person. The
total cost for the luncheons would be either $900.00 or $1,000.00 for the
staff.

Please take a moment to share this
idea with your staff and see if there is a contact person that would be willing
to be in touch with me to further organize this event. I will arrange the
specific lunch date with Joanne (the head secretary at SHS) and assist with the
ordering of food and payment to the caterer.

Payments can be made directly to: Vazzano's Catering

Attn: Chris for the Sandy Hook Lunch Funds

416 Horace Street

Bridgeport, CT 06606

*Or payments can be made over the phone with a credit card

Thank you for taking the time to
read this letter. I truly believe the teachers of Sandy Hook School are a remarkable
group of people who deserve this small gesture to show our support and love for
them during this time.